Readers Imbibing Peril Challenge 2024: Meet Bruce the Shark

https://odysee.com/@horror:4/Why-the-Shark-From-Jaws-Was-Named-%27Bruce%27--The-Daily-Jaws-:d?r=GTwnGJ4fFBQfzuJgpHVpfKBKaC9b8B16

Enjoy this fun bit of trivia about Bruce, the star of Jaws.

Readers Imbibing Peril Challenge 2024: Haunts

https://odysee.com/@horror:4/Haunts-%281976%29-Full-Movie--Internet-Archive-:2?r=GTwnGJ4fFBQfzuJgpHVpfKBKaC9b8B16

Ornery Owl's Rating:

Three out of Five Stars

The story begins with a young woman finding something nasty in the woodshed: a murder victim stabbed to death by a pair of scissors. The next day, a farmer has a flashback to a scene of childhood molestation while milking her goat. But did this really happen? Did any of it really happen? Or was it all part and parcel of the farmer's fevered imaginings?

The unreliable narrator is one of my favorite plot devices. However, the entire narrative in this movie is unreliable. 

Every man in town is either a drunken schmuck, a creepy weirdo, or a weird creepy drunk schmuck. You've got Frankie the Pervy Butcher driving to work while drinking and then hitting on the female customers. You've got Sheriff Billy Bob (I've already forgotten his actual name) who doesn't go check things out when Farmer Ingrid calls him because he's busy worshiping the porcelain god after going on a bender. He brushes her concerns off as her being a hysterical female. 

If I grew up in this town, I'd either want to join a convent or start an all-female commune. With the possible exception of Deputy Eager Beaver, who isn't on screen long enough to reveal any fatal flaws in his personality, the men in this neck of the woods just suck. 

Haunts won't scar you for life, but expect to be skeeved out more than once. Also, don't expect a satisfying ending that ties everything up in a neat little package or you'll end up out of sorts for sure. I doubt very much that film will end up becoming your new favorite. As our horror stream host Gary says, there's something I like about this movie, but it's a bad movie.  

Free use image from Dmitry Abramov on Pixabay

“This movie is six of one and a half dozen of the other, Harry. It isn’t the worst, but it sure as shootin’ ain’t the best.”

“I think it’s more like one of the first and eleven of the second, Ornery. By the way, I think I am scarred for life after watching that mess.”

Readers Imbibing Peril Challenge 2024: The Strangers in 7A

Ornery Owl's Rating:

Four out of Five Stars

This 1974 thriller features a stellar cast of character actors. Andy Griffith stars as Artie, a philandering building superintendent. Ida Lupino is his wife, Iris. Susanne Benton plays Claudine, the temptress who seduces Artie, only to reveal that she just wanted to give her boyfriend and his pals a place to stay while they plan a bank heist.

Michael Brandon plays Billy, the leader of the would-be bank robbers. Brandon is an underrated talent because he can convincingly switch from playing affable nice guys hoping to change the world for the better, as he did in F.M., to portraying hard men like Billy. James A. Watson Jr. and Tim McIntyre co-star as Billy's sidekicks, Riff and Virgil. 

The film features lots of action and a satisfying redemption arc. Bonus points for the right amount of cheesiness and the stylin' '70s attire.

Readers Imbibing Peril Challenge 2024: Summer of Fear

Ornery Owl's Rating:

Four out of Five Stars

That's five stars for enjoyment and three stars for execution. The plot is contrived, the acting is over the top, the contact lenses look really uncomfortable, and, damn it, it's a whole lot more fun than most modern horror movies. Bonus points for the dress that manages to look like Rachel (Linda Blair) made it from a shower curtain, but it somehow looks like a haute couture gown designed by a master seamstress when Julia (Lee Purcell) puts it on.